Our most heartfelt thanks go to you for supporting our family in our adoption last year. We would like to give you an update of our journey and the blessings you have contributed to it. First of all, our apologies for not sending this sooner. Our life has been a whirlwind since we brought our kids home last December and, as you can imagine, we have been quite busy with four kids! We traveled to Hungary on November 3, 2023 and met our two children, Benedict and Bernadette, on November 6. We visited with them for about nine days, spending more and more time with them as each day passed so they could get to know us a little bit. On November 13th they came into our care and we started what Hungary calls the bonding period. For the next 30 days we all began learning what it means to be a family of six. We had a set schedule each day that included morning and afternoon walks to local playgrounds, quiet time and play time, prayer and of course meals and frequent snacks! We also made frequent trips to the grocery stores and visited some local attractions. The first few weeks were very challenging as Benedict and Bernadette struggled to regulate themselves, had inappropriate behaviors, recurred to tantrums and yelling instead of words, and fought with each other all the time, hitting, kicking, and biting each other. We felt we were referees, always on guard and having to pay attention that nobody got hurt. As the weeks progressed though, so did their behaviors and by the fourth week in country we finally felt we were swimming above water and no longer drowning. Benedict and Bernadette played more and more with their older siblings and while issues still persisted, they started learning to be more respectful and less aggressive. On December 13th, we finalized the adoption and they officially became our children. We spent an additional week in Budapest, getting passports and visas and we were fortunate to have their Italian grandfather and aunt come see us while there and spend some time with us before we returned to the U.S. We flew back home on December 20th, just in time for Christmas. This by far has been the hardest of our three adoptions because of the behavioral challenges we faced in country. The struggle is still present, every day, and the road ahead of us is long as we know that the trauma our kids experienced before joining our family was not left behind in Hungary, but will be part of them for the rest of their lives. But we also know that patience, love and care can bring healing in time. We are seeing tremendous progress and we realize daily how far we have come since those first weeks of November last year. Volume control is still an issue at times, but again, things have greatly improved and the yelling and fighting is less frequent. They are also playing better and more respectfully with each other and with their older siblings so we are very grateful for this! When the fab four play together, they are really fabulous and a joy to see. Benedict and Bernadette have adjusted well to their new home and life here in the US and since February we have included them in many of the activities that our older kids do, such as Sunday school, American Heritage Girls and Trail Life, gymnastics, and our homeschool group meetings and field trips. Their English is coming along very well and they are both two chatter bugs now, enjoying our afternoon walks as special times to tell us what’s on their minds. They both knew their letters and numbers before coming into our care and since they showed a desire to learn once I picked up homeschooling for the older two, I started homeschooling them as well! We work on handwriting, phonics, math and science and of course learning about Jesus and our faith. We also spend a lot of time reading aloud and playing outside. Benedict and Bernadette both love jumping on our trampoline and riding their scooters and bikes, something they both learned recently. Benedict likes to play with legos, cars and trains and loves listening to music, while Bernadette is very crafty, likes to draw and play with dolls and stuffed animals. They both attended our church Vacation Bible School over the summer and Bernadette also did a ballet camp with her older sister and on both occasions they did very well. They were able to understand and follow instructions and played well with the other children. Now, we are homeschooling full time! Both kids are learning to read, they love math, and enjoy working on projects as a family as well as on their own! Each child’s personality is finally emerging and we can see more what each likes and what his or her talents are. It’s been a journey of discovery for us but for them as well, because at the beginning they did not know how to play by themselves or what they liked to do; they followed their older siblings around, always copying what they did. Adoption is never easy as each child comes with trauma and deals with it in a different way. We know our new children come from difficult backgrounds and their behaviors are the result of the circumstances in which they grew up, but we strive everyday, every moment of the day, to see them for what they are, beautiful, unique persons entrusted to us by God. Your financial support was essential for helping us defray our travel expenses. As you know, we had to stay in-country for six weeks and brought with us our two older children, so we had to cover living expenses for a family of six. Your grant ensured that the we had these resources and that we could properly care for our two new children through food, clothing and transportation while in Hungary. Once again, we are beyond grateful for your financial support and for your prayers and for all that you do for adoptive families.